Read about the other books on the list.In the Woods by Tana French
Tana French’s 2007 debut novel begins with two mysteries: In the ’80s, three children set out to play in the woods, two disappear, and the other is found shocked and trembling, his shoes filled with blood and his memory blank. Twenty years later, the boy who survived is a detective sent to investigate the possibly related murder of a 12-year-old girl in those same woods. By the end of the book, the author provides a solution for only the latter homicide, leaving us to speculate about the original, and frankly more interesting, disappearance. Although it’s clear the author intends to riff a bit on the traditional murder mystery, getting to the bottom of the detective’s case but reminding us that an easy answer isn’t always possible, it’s hard not to come away from the novel feeling as unsatisfied as its troubled protagonist.
See the Page 69 Test: Tana French's In the Woods.
--Marshal Zeringue
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